THE MIDLIFE TRANSITION - CRISIS OR CHIMERA

The construct of the midlife crisis is examined on definitional, devel opmental, psychoanalytic, and existential dimensions, and the literatu re reviewed. The DSM-III-R criteria for Adjustment Disorder appear to subsume the midlife crisis paradigm, and only a small percentage of pe ople high in neuroticism are prone to developmental crises. It is argu ed that the crisis model is a contemporary social construct that has o utlived its usefulness.